


i've been wandering

by zombiesolace



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, F/M, Getting Together, Mystery, Science Bros, Thriller
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-07-15 23:53:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16074020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zombiesolace/pseuds/zombiesolace
Summary: “fuckaliens” - Ransom probably - “no not like that”(or: when the crew of ERTH Samwell disappear on a standard space venture, Ransom and Lardo realise they're probably gonna have to rescue them)





	i've been wandering

**Author's Note:**

> ＜◥ _ ◤＞ we, like, come in peace?

Justin re-checks and re-adjusts that his slide is aligned with the microscope lens only to sight darkness once again. He glances surreptitiously at the clock – two minutes since he last looked – and winds the stage down. His eyes are on the lab door – no sign of Adam – when he revolves the objective lenses.

The stool screeches against the floor as he tucks himself in closer; he winces and peeks at Larissa to make sure he hasn’t disturbed her. He’s new to this lab, new to lab research and doesn’t want to be a distraction.

Larissa is hunched down, evermore dwarfed by dogeared textbooks and electronic scraps he knows she dug out of an Earth dump because they fucking stink. Her tongue is out in a cute little lion blep and it makes him smile.

Her eyes flick up from her latest project, spearing him. “What’s up?”

Justin hums and turns back to his slides casually. He blanches when he sees the microscope isn’t on. No fucking wonder he hasn’t been able to see the antiseptic glue.

“I might contact the crew,” he says, faux idle, “we don’t know much about this planet.”

Larissa’s concentration returns to her work but a slight grin escapes. “That is sort of a prerequisite for planetary exploration.”

Justin rolls his eyes even as he struggles not to show any amusement. “You don’t think Jack rushed this mission?”

“Oh no he definitely did,” Larissa says.

Admiral Hall and Vice Admiral Murray had retired early this month throwing the crew into excitable disarray. Jack and Shitty had been promoted with much fanfare; the duo contributing to the overall excitement, disarray, and fanfare more than the rest of the crew put together. Even Adam’s Broadway inspired soul couldn’t compete (though let it be known he’d tried gallantly). ERTH Samwell had been celebrating ever since the change of hands and Justin worried they’d yet to stop.

“I don’t think there’s reason to be anymore concerned that usual,” Larissa says. “Protocol is being followed.”

As reassuring as her rationale is, Justin’s anxiety is obviously having none of it. He weighs the pros and cons of calling them. Who it would be helping, what it would change, how to justify it, whether he’s anymore nervous about this expedition than usual or whether he’s always this on edge and simply armed with a solid motivation for onc—

“Oh,” he hears.

Justin shoves himself to his feet and his stool screams dramatically where he can’t.

“Larissa,” he says, gravely.

She stands more slowly but with zero coordination. “Shitty was going to call me half an hour ago.”

Justin nods rapidly. Admiral Hall’s last order had been a request that they remember Murphy’s law. “Race you to the bridge?”

 

* * *

 

Roxon-Myar is an overshadowed moon that spirals a tyrannical gas giant. The Samwell probe had reported an environment with little gravity or atmosphere ahead. Their mapping system, still open on the ship’s HUD, depicts a repeating pattern of low lying, life enriched valleys and towering mountains reaching beyond the shallow atmosphere. The probe had concluded the expedition safe, mind a ‘moderate degree of caution be exercised’. Justin hadn’t asked why, he found the less he knew about things out of his control the less convoluted his imagination would be.

“She sure is pretty,” Larissa says as they wait for the COMMs to connect. Her lips curve guilelessly as she eyes his pacing. “Like a snake you think?”

Justin looks her over as he circles the room anew. “Mmm, yes, I do see the resemblance between the two of you.”

Larissa snorts and the connection cuts; it stiffens her smile but doesn’t eliminate it. She calls again.

“Are the emergency pods functional?” he says, dodging Adam’s empty seat. There is a row of discoloured tissues and napkins slotted under the lip of his Navigation table. The gross sight makes Justin grin a little, thinking of all the used tissues he’s left around Adam’s room because he knew they’d go unnoticed. He joins Larissa at the COMMs table on his next lap.

“We have our pick of the emergency pods,” she says, “I’m not working on any of them at the moment. ” He breathes out a slow breath, that’s what he’d wanted to hear. Now all he needs to hear is Jack’s collected voice and all will be right in the universe.

The loading screen blinks and blips tonelessly at them.

Their call rings unanswered.

“They’ll be following protocol,” Justin says, placing his hand on Larissa’s shoulder. It grounds him.

She twists from his grip and claps her hand against his bicep. “And so will we.”

They’re halfway to the loading dock, laden with gear and equipment when Larissa grimaces. “How do you feel about winging it?”

Justin widens his eyes pointedly. “I feel like protocol says nothing of the sort.”

“Right,” she agrees, “but we aren’t supposed to leave the ship unattended which would mean one of us goes it alone.”

Justin juts out his bottom lip and nods. “Yeah, cool, I love improvising.”

Larissa laughs softly and they pick up the pace. “Really we should be waiting longer than this but Shitty always calls on time. His dad is always late y’know? So it’s a big thing of his.”

“Adam is always early,” Justin says to fill the silence. “He has such _vigour for life_ , there’s no time to waste.” His tone is vaguely mocking but it’s wholly put on.

“I can’t say I fall at either extreme,” Larissa says.

“Yeah, me neither,” Justin says. “Depends entirely on how much sleep I’ve had.”

“Totally,” Larissa agrees. They share a fist bump, a barely there brush of skin fraught with distraction and adrenaline.

The first thing Justin does upon entering the emergency pod is call Jack’s COMM. It rings hollowly through the cramped space as they settle themselves.

Once seated, Larissa drops her hands slowly to her knees with a reluctant finality. “You know how to fly this right?”

“What?” Justin says, “You built this thing.”

Larissa rolls her eyes. “I’m a textile engineer. I’ve edited the defenses and the components of the craft, that’s shit all to do with driving.”

Justin’s hands hover over his joystick; years of experience with motorbikes, hover-boards, and ambulances flashing through his mind.

Larissa raises an eyebrow. “You _do_ …”

“I do know,” Justin interrupts, “I just know other vehicles better is all.”

Liftoff is shaky. His breathing is much the same, though less of a racket. It’s been a long time since he’s flown any kind of vehicle. Three years on this vessel as the head medic have meant he has a cushy ass job.

Luckily it’s almost impossible to fly off course in space. With Samwell firmly locked into Roxon-Myar’s orbit and the moon’s gravity ever insistent, Justin steers them smoothly from point A to B.

“We should be taking logs,” Larissa mutters as they near the soft orange section of the planet. A reflection of lights breaks the gradient; hopefully the crew are nearby their ships. He steers towards the clearing.

“Shit,” Justin says, half because she’s right and half because the craft is vibrating from the atmosphere change. “We should follow _some_ protocol.”

“I’ll be brief,” she says, tapping at the HUD and entering the Samwell Diary as Eric has dubbed it. They’ve yet to have any complaints from the higher-ups about starting their entries with ‘Dear Diary’ much to everyone’s delight.

Listening to Larissa coolly reiterate their realisations and conclusions calms him. They know what they’re doing even if Justin often feels like he’s always picking the wrong choice. Larissa’s presence and fortitude puts Justin at ease. She has done from the moment he entered the lab last month and started researching the standard medical supplies for proficiency. Their crew is tight and intimate but it’s only recently that she’s started going out of her way to interact with him and only recently that his crush has developed. It’s pretty much a win/win.

This potentially high stakes situation doesn’t stop Larissa from drawing a laugh out of him when she stutters over Shitty’s name, belatedly covering with his more _professional_ alias: B.S.

Justin clears his throat when they land. “I know we aren’t equipped for this and expeditions aren’t our area of expertise but I’m glad it’s you I’m with.”

Larissa’s face blares red and Justin feels his cheeks heat in response. She clears her throat, eyes scanning their surroundings. “I mean I lucked the fuck out, you’re a _doctor_.”

Justin grins broadly. “Fuck yeah, I have shit under control and what I don’t I can fix afterwards.”

Larissa laughs, “Right on. We’re gonna kill it—whatever this bizarre shit is.”

While the emergency pod scans the surrounding area for information they suit up in the back of the vehicle. It’s even tighter than the two-seater cockpit but every other loose elbow is definitely swung on purpose.

The scans state nothing dangerous within the immediate area. That doesn’t mean they’re safe, the scan specifically states there are no animals nearby. For such a lush planet that is concerning.

Even still they bypass the dusty guns without a glance. Lethal weaponry isn’t their style and they’re untrained beyond an introductory course. Plus Justin’s highkey scared of guns. Chris is working on phasing the lethal aspects out of their defense system much to his fucking relief.

The ground is spongy beneath his feet, soft reddish grass-like foliage covering the clearing. It crumples underfoot, leaving a perfect imprint of his soles. Justin exchanges a look with Larissa and they hotfoot it over to the crew’s space crafts. Sure enough Justin counts seven trails leading off into the treeline. The prints aren’t as crisp as his had been, the grass instead is slowly lifting and reforming like memory foam returning to its natural state.

“Let’s check the ships first,” Larissa says. Her eyes are on the part in the underbrush even as her feet lead her onto the closest vessel.

It is eerily quiet in both the artificial space of the space crafts and outside them on Roxon-Myar. Wind gusts through the unusually large palm bushes, throwing them haphazardly into the canopy of trees. Justin squints out of the bay window. He’s not sure from this distance but the canopy appears to be one vast and sprawling tree with many stabilising trunks.

He loves visiting new planets, there is always something miraculous and unthought of to be found. He just also greatly prefers to know that it’s a safe place first. And from the look of the deserted vessels, he isn’t really feeling a guarantee.

Larissa waits for him with her hands planted firmly on her hips as she gazes out into the wilderness. “How come you don’t go on these expeditions anymore? You’re the head medic.”

“Will needs the independent experience and Jack reckons that everyone is more cautious when I’m not around to save their asses. Except Derek,” Justin says with a smirk, “his clumsiness cannot be contained.”

Larissa shoulders her pack and heads off. “Fuck I hope this turns out to be something that mundane.”

Justin isn’t so sure but he won’t risk speaking something into fruition.

The foliage becomes dense the moment they step into its embrace. If it weren’t for the fact that the bushes, grasses, and trees alike are all shockingly malleable they’d never know which way they came. At one point Larissa leans into a tree trunk for support and when she pulls away there is a perfect hand print sunken into the bark.

It is an immensely curious place but beyond their imprint and the trail left by the crew Justin sees little other evidence of life.

“Do you think the life on this planet knows how to not leave an impression?” he asks at one point as he bends overhanging branches out of his way.

Larissa’s already hushed voice is made harder to hear from her position behind him. “That or they’ve been avoiding this area.”

Justin bites his lip and strains to see something beyond the never ending tunnel before them. “You heard that the valley’s were life rich from the probe right?”

“Yeah,” Larissa says, quietly, “I heard that too.”

The deeper they travel the more homogeneous the foliage becomes. The gradients of colour begin to blend and merge into great washes of burnt orange from the forest floor to the tops of the reaching trees. Objectively it is as peaceful and warming as breakfast in bed here. Subjectively the lack of activity and sound are setting Justin’s teeth on edge. The Samwell crew are never quiet; not during sleep, official announcements, or vowed food theft induced silent treatment.

“You’re scared too, right?” Justin checks. Nothing is happening and he feels somewhat ridiculous for reacting like this is an active attack.

Larissa scoffs, “dude, no doubt.”

Justin breathes out a heavy breath and forges ahead.

Their trek remains hushed and stealthy for the next half an hour. There is no sign of life, native or foreign otherwise. The deeper they go, the further they travel, the more Justin strangely calms. Instead of an anticipatory build, he finds himself confused and curious. They turn a sharp corner for no discernible reason and find the path snakes two directions, widening and rising as it does. At the crossroads, lies the crews abandoned equipment. Each pack has it’s COMM unit firmly strapped in place.

“Okay,” Larissa says, “Let’s take stock and then panic.”

“Works for me,” Justin mutters. He steps directly into the T-bone of the trail as Larissa goes for the equipment. Pressed into the soft ground are a myriad of footprints — they are not human. He crouches and places his hand inside one. His hands are study and wide; perfect for cradling babies Adam once told him in a drunken stupor. Only once his fingers are spread as far as he can stretch do they reach the sides of these prints. The shape is unnatural to Earth; they curve shallowly in the back and spike out multiple times in two-toed sets at the front.

Justin leans in close.

Buried and disturbed, he sees the footprints his friends made. They take the left turn at a sharp angle. The alien’s prints dead end their original path and follow along.

“Nothing is damaged,” Larissa says, “I think they took their packs off voluntarily and from the way they’re scattered I’d say they did it suddenly.”

“Being chased would account for that,” Justin says lowly.

Larissa reaches to rub sweat from her brow distractedly and her hand smacks against her visor. Their suits are regulated to keep their bodies comfortable; she doesn’t have an external reason to be sweating so profusely.

A noise sounds then. It is not a particularly concerning sound but it is the first thing they have heard since arriving on the planet. The low scrabbling noise sends goosebumps racing across Justin’s skin.

“I don’t think this planet is safe after all,” he says breezily like he isn’t whispering.

“Yeah, no shit,” Larissa murmurs. “Damn and I really wanted to make inspiration out of this colour palette.”

The noise sounds again. It doesn’t sound unlike a dog digging energetically into the earth; it would were the noise not traveling rapidly across the ground.

“So we’re following?” Justin says.

Larissa eyes their new trail. The new tunnel is as tall and wide as an motorhome. There are six feet to contend with, who the fuck knew what’s being carried up-top of that powerhouse. She nods evenly, standing from her crouch with a grimace.

Justin takes the supplies she removed from the others bags and he pretends that it doesn’t feel disrespectful. There’s no evidence to say that they’re dead, yet. He feels a little numb to the situation, particularly when Larissa hands him a taser and he doesn’t immediately pocket it.

It stays firmly in his grasp as they follow the alien tracks.

They find the crew sunk into the ground. The tunnel opens out onto an outcrop of flat red rock; the seven of them swallowed by it, some as low as their hips and others as high as their armpits. They’re strangely silent.

Jack raises a slow finger to his lips, then drags it to their left. He points into the dense foliage. Justin sees nothing.

He doesn’t look for long, he would rather be inspecting his friends. They don’t appear harmed; stressed yes, harried in particular, and most definitely scared. Each of them had their arms raised above the surface of the rock. The image is eerily similar to films Justin has seen of adventurers sunk into quicksand. Except he knows quicksand doesn’t work like it was depicted and that this rock looks solid.

Justin crouches. “Is everyone okay?” he whispers.

They nods in response, except for Derek who shoots him an exaggerated thumbs up and Chris who makes a so-so gesture as he rolls his eyes.

Larissa snorts in response and there is a rustling of leaves to their right. Everyone freezes.

Justin could have sworn Jack pointed to the left before.

They wait as still and silent as statues for what feels like hours. The strain of holding unnaturally motionless brings a sweat over Justin. At the very least, in that time he is able to tell that his friends aren’t sinking.

Larissa crawls forward surreptitiously and chucks Jack her COMM. They are a few metres ahead and facing away—it misses. The COMM bounces off Jack’s shoulder and hits the rock. --it bounces, leaving a soft dent in the rock. The ground smoothes out as Justin watches, as though the COMM never struck it.

He notices, that the heavier his friends are, the further down they are sunk into the rock. Adam has his hands resting on his head with the tops of his armpit buried while Eric can rest his hands on his still exposed hips. They need to figure out a way for his friends to get some upward momentum.

Larissa pulls Justin’s COMM from his pants pocket with a slight show of cheek and texts: _What chased you?_

Jack received the COMM when Justin wasn’t watching. _It’s gone_ , he responds. _It’s in the rock._

Justin watches as Jack points down, his finger indicating the metres of undisturbed rock between them. Larissa exchanges a freaked glance with Justin and gestures to where they last heard the, apparently _other,_ alien.

_The second one ambushed us. It’s fast, fast enough we couldn’t see it properly. The alien chasing us did, I think, but the new one tripped or pushed it into the rock._

“Fuck,” Larissa mouths, eyes wide on the COMM unit.

_We haven’t seen it since but it’s definitely watching us._

Justin shrugs his pack off hurriedly and pulls free a coil of wire rope. It’s time they got the fuck out of here. He attaches a hook to the other end, one wide enough to get two handholds on.

A sturdy lattice of branches hang over the rock surface. They look strong enough to hold the crew.

_I’m going to hook this rope over a branch and we’ll pull you up into the trees. I think the rock density means you can only sink to a certain level depending on your weight. If we lighten your weight then we should be able to pull you all free._

When Adam reads the message Jack passes around he blows Justin an exaggerated round of kisses. It lightens Justin, time to do the same for his friends.

It takes a couple of tries for him to catch the hook over a branch, but once done, Will gives it a good tug and it proves to hold.

Justin and Larissa exchange a grimace as they ready to haul ass. The knots they worked into the cord to support their grips don’t look like a pleasant bump in the road even with their gloves on.

It’s difficult work. Halfway through pulling Will into the air, Justin’s suit begins whirring in a new regulating pattern. He’s breathless and shaking by the time they have half of the crew into the teams. It is fortunate that the rock gives easily and it is only the weight of their friends they have to contend with.

The substance doesn’t stick to their suits but it clings avidly to the cord every time it drops on the rock surface. Thinking over the potential elements at play makes the physical toil easier to ignore.

Shitty comes last. He hangs from the hook one handed and fist pumps victoriously as he swings in the air. It wrenches Larissa and Justin dangerously close to the edge.

“He’s dead,” Larissa hisses as they stagger a step backwards. Justin’s arms and lungs burn, laughing won’t do his concentration any good right now as much as he is tickled to do so. She doesn’t miss the way he bites his lip if her smirk is anything to go by.

Like children a top a set of orange monkey bars the crew of the Samwell peer down with grins on their faces. It is impossible not to laugh at the sight. They’re _safe_.

Justin has barely a moment to register the way their smiles drop before he goes tumbling forward from a brutal sideswipe. It knocks the wind out of him and jumpstarts his shuddering heart. It strikes him, as he falls, that if he lands face first in the rock he won’t survive it’s pull.

Larissa wrenches his arm back with a bruising grip, with her entire body as a counterweight his trajectory changes. Justin lands on the soft ground with a gasp, his fingers digging desperately into the malleable foliage. His right leg burns cold from the knee down.

“I can’t see it,” Larissa pants, “I can’t see it, get up.”

Justin stares down at his leg, knee deep in the rock. The hold is firm and lacks give even as it pulls free easily. He shudders as the hole closes over.

There are whispers in the trees above as Justin stands. It takes a moment for their words to translate as Larissa pulls him away from the edge. They can’t see it either.

“It’s time to go,” she says sharply and Samwell makes their move. She grasps up her taser and stands guard, her jaw tight and eyes blazing.

Justin throws the wire cord aside to ensure they don’t trip over it should the alien come for them again. His eyes stray to the dense foliage again and again, his pulse racing as silence settles around them. It could be fucking anywhere.

“Hey,” Larissa whispers, “Can I get the rope? I want to analyse that liquid rock.”

Justin sighs. The hook of it had landed in the bushes. He grasps up the piece closest to him and ignores Adam’s hissing at him to be careful. If that alien wants them in the rock liquid, it’ll make damn sure they end up there.

The cord doesn’t move when he pulls on it and he sighs again. He can’t see the other end and fuck knows what it’s caught on. He just wants out of here. Another tug yields no results, an upwards flick does nothing either.

Justin readjusts his grip and as he locks the cord around his forearm it wrenches him forwards. He stumbles towards the treeline with a yelp, eyes on the cord disappearing into the brown.

It stops pulling and Justin freezes—the gradient of colour surrounding them are _orange_.

The cord jerks on his arm with burning sensation as it unravels. It vanishes into the foliage and something moves beyond the reaching flora. A silhouette looms in front of him, silent and patient. Justin’s heart seizes.

Something brushes against his back and he yells, staggering back. Larissa slams into him, grasp tight, and screams at his reaction.

The treeline shakes beside them and a trampling noise follows. It rushes around the rock surface, knocking leaves and branches to the floor before petering out in the distance.

“Oh shit,” Larissa gasps, “you scared me.”

“I think you scared it too,” Jack says, suddenly behind them. He’s ever vaguely amused, vaguely commiserating expression is a goddamn sight for sore eyes. The rest of Samwell climb from the foliage behind him, shaken but gloriously alive.

“It’s hug o’clock,” Shitty cheers and throws himself at them.

Adam lifts Justin off his feet when he reaches him and they both tear up at the sight of one another. His anxiety mercifully quiets for a blissful moment.

“ _Bro_ ,” Justin says, distressed.

“ _Bro_ ,” Adam says, anguished.

They follow the vanishing pathway back to their vessels as a huddle of overlapping arms and hands. It should slow them down but the further they get from the rock surface the louder the forest becomes around them. The sudden activity is unnerving. Justin sees a buttload of cool animals on the way back but his emotional quota has ticked over for the week so he couldn’t care less honestly.

Jack frowns when he sees the three space crafts. His head tips back as he gazes up at ERTH Samwell. “You left the ship unattended.”

Justin blinks, taken aback, as Larissa swoops in and orders Eric to smack him. He doesn’t, but he does say ‘sweetie’ and that’s a far more of a threat.

“Ha,” Jack says, “just kidding,” even though he totally wasn’t.

Larissa rolls her eyes where Justin can see and he throws an arm around her shoulders. “We did good,” he declares.

“Let’s argue for a raise,” Larissa says behind a cupped hand as she tucks herself into his side. He feels at ease for the first time today, surrounded by his friends at last.

“Done!” Shitty shouts.

“ _No_ ,” Jack says, “neither of us have the authority to do that.”

“I’ll hotbox the viewing deck for the you?”

Justin laughs as Larissa says: “ _Done._ ”

 

* * *

 

Later, after an official briefing with their higher-ups and a lazy dinner, they cross paths outside their sleeping quarters. Justin smiles on the tail end of a yawn at the sight of her. Larissa is clad in a threadbare tank top and what are undoubtedly child’s pajama bottoms.

“Cute ducks,” he says.

Larissa smirks and leans against the wall, arms crossed. “You’re cute,” she says.

Justin just about swallows his tongue. “I—ah.”

The corners of Larissa’s mouth slowly turn down in a panic as the silence holds. Justin throws his hands up before him to hold off her assumption. “I—I have a great deal of respect for you,” he manages. “And you’re so cool. I always want to do something cool in return to like _dazzle_ you.” If he can play tug of war with a murderous alien, he can talk his way through a crush.

“I, I am dazzled,” Larissa says, a blush growing on her cheeks.

“Cool,” Justin breathes. “Sorry, I’m bad at accepting compliments.”

Larissa nods sagely, avoiding eye contact. “Same.”

Footsteps sound around the corner and Jack appears with a sheepish wave. While Justin hadn’t expected this sudden turn of conversation that doesn’t mean he wants it interrupted in any regard.

Larissa heaves a sigh and hauls herself up off the wall. “Yeah?”

“Your rock pool goo investigation has been given the go ahead,” he says to Larissa, “but now we must exercise a high degree of caution on Roxom-Myar.”

Justin had scoffed when Larissa had waved the taser in his face to show off the liquid rock stuck on it and proposed the idea. He’d said it would be too dangerous.

She shoots him a smug look now. “Thanks, Jack.” She waits until Jack disappears into his room before speaking again. “Got something to say?”

Justin grins, shaking his head.

Larissa rubs her hands together in excitement. “There are few known naturally occurring substances which are both liquid and solid at once. I can make something of this. Maybe I’ll get my doctorate too.”

Justin bites his lip, emboldened by her vibrancy. “...if you want? I could come along as the official medic to oversee your safety? You know while your back is turned to the forest.”

“Yikes,” Larissa says nervously. She glances at the floor and back up into his eyes. “Doesn’t sound like much of a date.”

Justin laughs out his next breath in a rush. “You reckon? This is our area of expertise.”

Larissa deliberates with a growing smirk. She shrugs in a show of challenging nonchalance, “Yeah, alright. You’re on.”

**Author's Note:**

> comment me an alien joke or a compliment i'm not fussy


End file.
